Thomas and the Magic Railroad (2019 film)
From the director of Back to the Future, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, The Polar Express ''and A Christmas Carol and the producer of ''Shrek, Shrek 2, Shrek the Third and Shrek Forever After. Thomas and the Magic Railroad (also known as ''Thomas the Tank Engine: The Magic Railroad ''in the United Kingdom and Germany) is an upcoming American 3D live-action/CGI animated family adventure fantasy film directed by Robert Zemeckis and Britt Allcroft based on three titled The Railway Series by Rev. W. Awdry, on the television series of the character from the same name and Shining Time Station by Britt Allcroft. The film is a remake of the 2000 original film of the same name by the same director who created the film named Britt Allcroft, but it was a box-office bomb and a critical failure from critics and the fandom of the book and the show for the plot that was changed from the original cut, terrible acting, and the editing which had made the editor shortened the time of the main character and removed the true villain when it released on 2000, which in the new version, it has all the characters like P.T. Boomer, Tasha and even George from the film and not been edited from before along with the help of Robert Zemeckis. It was produced by ImageMovers, Legendary Pictures, and HiT Entertainment, presented in association with the Isle of Man Film Commission, and distributed by Universal Pictures. The film was a box office success and it received critical acclaim, with critics praising the faithfulness to the 2000 film's original director's cut, the visual effects, the CGI animation on the trains, splendid acting, well-developed characters, and the plot along with the performance of Nicolas Cage as P.T. Boomer. The film also become the fourth highest grossing film and won eight Academy Awards and received eight Academy Award nominations. At the UK, the film had won three BAFTA Film Awards and also got one BAFTA nomination. Synopsis the synopsis is done development Plot The film begins with Mr. Conductor (Alec Baldwin) narrating the story on the Island of Sodor, where it was populated by talking trains, which the only one here was Thomas the Tank Engine (Michael J. Fox). Thomas is a really useful engine who is very kind to his friends. A few seconds later, Thomas met Gordon (Brad Garrett) at Wellsworth Station. Gordon complains to Thomas, who is late. Thomas retorts that Gordon is being bossy and says that he has to find Mr. Conductor, who is looking after the North Western Railway while, Sir Topham Hatt (George Clooney) was gone for a holiday. Gordon claims Mr. Conductor isn't needed, but then, Diesel 10 (Clancy Brown) rudely pass both Thomas and Gordon, which means that Diesel 10 was sent to the Island of Sodor by Sir Topham Hatt for helping, but he was acting like he was bullying any engines. Thomas is later talking to James (Susan Roman) at Tidmouth Sheds when Diesel 10 shows up and voices his plan to destroy a lost engine and thus the remaining steam engines. James is confused, but Thomas is worried and goes to find Mr. Conductor. After seeing Billy Twofeathers' (John Leguizamo) map and noticing some strange lines on it, Patch (Nick Palatas) heads off to Muffle Mountain to see Burnett Stone (Owen Wilson). There's something on Muffle Mountain, a secret that Burnett only shared with his childhood friend and future wife Tasha: he promised he would drive an engine and take her with him. When Patch sees the engine, Burnett reveals the engine's past - her name is Lady, and she has been sealed inside Muffle Mountain since Diesel 10 nearly destroyed her long ago. Burnett has fixed her up, but still needs coal. Diesel 10 tells his cronies Splatter, Dodge, Diesel, Arry and Bert of his plan. The four bumbling diesels report that Mr. Conductor is coming to Sodor, so Diesel 10 decides to destroy him too. Mr. Conductor prepares to leave Shining Time. Despite difficulty with his gold dust, he soon meets Thomas on Sodor. Thomas reports on Diesel 10; Mr. Conductor decides to use his gold dust to keep Diesel 10 in order. Burnett looks at a painting of Lady and starts to have doubts in his belief of magic due to his failure to guard her. Meanwhile, far away, Burnett's granddaughter Lily (Kate Melton) prepares to visit him. Thomas, James and Gordon begin arguing about who should have taken Mr. Conductor, unaware Splatter and Dodge are spying on them. Henry (Christopher Lloyd), Toby (Peter Capaldi), Duck (Steven Kynman) and Edward (Matthew Broderick) tells them about the lost engine. So Percy (E. G. Daily), James, Emily (Kath Soucie) and Rosie (Nika Futterman) go and find her. Splatter, Dodge, Diesel, Arry and Bert tease Thomas, until Harold flies by, spreading dust over all six. At Knapford, Mr. Conductor reads the note Sir Topham Hatt left him. After trying on his top hat (and returning it after he notices the portrait of the Controller appears angry) he receives a phone call from Sir Topham Hatt and receives his instructions. That night, Diesel 10 creeps up and demolishes the side of the Tidmouth Sheds with his powerful claw. Mr. Conductor reprimands Diesel 10, but then he discovers that he has run out of gold dust. Diesel 10, delighted, tries to convince Mr. Conductor of the lost engine's whereabouts, but Mr. Conductor frightens Diesel 10 away with a bag of sugar. Mr. Conductor voices his concern about his gold dust, but tells the engines to go back to sleep. Mr. Conductor later has a nightmare of Shining Time in ruins, and realises that his universe is in danger and that he needs more gold dust. The next morning, Mutt goes to Lily's hometown with Billy, as he knows that Lily can help Mr. Conductor, but only if she meets someone special at Shining Time first. To reach that end, he directs her onto the wrong train. Mr. Conductor goes to the windmill in search of more gold dust, but gets lost. Meanwhile, the engines gather for a meeting. Bertie passes by and tells them to smile, but all have their individual concerns. Thomas heads off to look for Mr. Conductor. Mr. Conductor tries a carrot and a stick of celery to make him think properly, and has the idea of calling his beach-loving cousin Junior (David Tennant), who has used up most of his gold dust too. He tells Junior to go to Shining Time and get his emergency whistle, then go to Sodor, and warns him not to talk to anyone about the buffers. Before he can say anything else, the line goes dead. Lily arrives at Shining Time and Mutt barks at her to get off the train. Lily finds the station empty and meets Junior. After a talk, Lily picks up the gold dust Junior leaves behind. At Sodor, Edward and Duck speak to George about Diesel 10 using him. George just ignores them and carries on. Mr. Conductor is sleeping by a bush when he has another nightmare, and wakes up hearing Thomas calling his name. Mr. Conductor tries to reply, but Thomas can't hear him. Lily meets Stacy, who takes her to Burnett. That night, Burnett and Lily hear Lady's whistle coming from the mountains; Patch, who is outside with his horse, hears it too. Thomas, Edward, Duck and Percy talk about Mr. Conductor and conclude that he travels to Sodor on a magic railroad. Diesel 10 overhears them and goes to the scrapyards to tell Splatter and Dodge his plan. Toby interrupts them by ringing his bell; Diesel 10, trying to catch him, causes the shed to crash down on him, Splatter, Dodge, Diesel, Arry and Bert. Thomas finds Henry with a bad cold and offers to get some Welsh coal to make him better, but while collecting them fails to notice the sixth truck bouncing away into some magic buffers. Elizabeth (Jennifer Saunders) passes and greets Thomas and his five trucks; Thomas is confused. Thomas tells Percy about the missing truck, and they realise that the buffers where the truck disappeared are the buffers leading to the Magic Railroad. Thomas tells Percy to guard the buffers while he goes to find Mr. Conductor. Meanwhile, Mr. Conductor is wandering aimlessly when Diesel 10 appears. Mr Conductor is captured by Diesel 10's claw and is dangled over the Cronk viaduct. Diesel 10 reveals he knows about the buffers, and threatens to drop Mr. Conductor if he doesn't reveal their whereabouts. Mr. Conductor cuts a tube to Diesel 10's claw, catapulting him to the windmill. There, he sees the words "Stoke up the magic in the mountain and the Lady will smile, then watch the swirls that spin so well". As for Diesel 10, he uses his claw to hit the coal hopper, which lots of coal falls on him. Harvey comes to clean up the mess. Lily is introduced to Patch, who offers her a horse ride to Shining Time. There she meets Junior again, who takes her to Sodor via the magic buffers. They meet Thomas, who agrees to help, and together they find Mr. Conductor at the windmill. Mr. Conductor tells Junior about his clue to the gold dust, and Lily is introduced to Mr. Conductor. Junior then climbs onto the sail, and is flung onto Diesel 10. That night, Percy finds Splatter, Dodge, Diesel, Arry, Bert and George at the magic buffers and races to warn Thomas. Mr. Conductor and Lily camp out with Thomas. After a conversation, they realise that Burnett may hold the key to the clue of the gold dust. Burnett reveals to Patch that Lady is magic and they realise that the railroad is vanishing. Thomas and Percy decide they must get Lily back to Muffle Mountain before Diesel 10 destroys the magic railroad, and Thomas and Lily set off. While journeying through the magic railroad, they discover the missing truck. Lily, realising the connection between the truck and the clue, asks Thomas to collect the truck. They soon arrive on Muffle Mountain. Lily leaves to find Burnett, but a gust of wind blows Thomas down the hill and back into the magic railroad through a mysterious portal at the bottom. Lily finds Patch, who takes her to Burnett's workshop. Lily figures out only Welsh coal can make Lady steam, so she sends Patch to collect the coal from the truck. Diesel 10, with Junior still on his back, races into the Smelters where he encounters James. Junior tries to whistle both of them out, only to discover that he, too, is out of gold dust. Diesel 10 tries to force the two into a melting pit, but Junior uses the last of his extra gold dust to teleport himself and James away. The two arrive near the buffers, where Mr. Conductor is there waiting. Mr. Conductor and Junior, both out of gold dust, refuse to give up hope. By now Burnett Stone has finally got Lady to steam, and along with Lily, Patch and Mutt, they set off into the magic railroad. The magic railroad, receiving energy from Lady (Britt Allcroft), comes back to life, while Lady's face appears. The team encounter Thomas before appearing on Sodor, where they reunite with the two conductors. Diesel 10 starts to give chase, but Splatter and Dodge, fed up with Diesel 10's ways, abandon him. Thomas offers to help Lady, with Burnett driving Lady. Mr. Conductor warns them about the collapsing viaduct. Just as the engines run away, the conductors realise that Lady is part of the clue to the gold dust. The chase finally approaches the viaduct. As Lady and Burnett pass the viaduct begins to collapse. Thomas manages to jump through the gap, but Diesel 10 can't stop in time and falls off into a sludge barge (he looks on the bright side by saying it's a nice time of the year for a cruise). Thomas, Lady and Burnett return, where they and the rest of the team work out on the answer to the riddle. Lily mixes water from the well with golden shavings from the magic railroad, and tosses them into the air, where they form into gold dust. The conductors, delighted, re-supply their whistles, while Thomas thanks Lady. Patch and Mutt go to look around, while Junior gives Lily some gold dust. Junior tells Mr. Conductor that he wants to work now, so Mr. Conductor gives him his hat and sends him to a railroad with "palm trees and sunny spells". After Junior leaves, Sir Topham Hatt calls and says that he is on his way back, so Mr. Conductor sets off to welcome him. Lily offers her gold dust to Burnett, who sprinkles it on her bluebird toy and whispers that they will "always remember their Shining Time together". With Lady and the Magic Railroad back to life, Shining Time is restored to its former glory. Thomas happily puffs into the sunset, and the end credits roll. Cast Live-action actors * Kate Melton as Lily Stone, the main protagonist and the granddaughter of Burnett Stone. She lives in the city with her mother. With the help of her grandpa, Patch and Thomas, they helped restore Lady to her former glory and returned the magic to the Magic Railroad. ** Anne Hathaway as Adult Lily * Owen Wilson as Burnett Stone, the tetartagonist who is Lady's caretaker on his workshop at Muffle Mountain. Long ago, he only shared the secret of Lady with Tasha, his childhood friend. * Josh Hutcherson as Teenage Burnett * Owen Vaccaro as Young Burnett * Alec Baldwin as Mr. Conductor, the deuteragonist of the film and a 20-centimetre tall conductor who narrated the television series episodes that appeared in Shining Time Station. * David Tennant as Junior, Mr. Conductor's cousin. Like his cousin, he is at a regular height on Sodor and the Magic Railroad - anywhere else, he shrinks to a height of 24 centimetres (ten inches). * AnnaSophia Robb as Tasha ** Scarlett Estevez as Young Tasha * Nicolas Cage as P.T. Boomer, Pete Tiberius Boomer is the main antagonist who wants to get revenge on Burnett Stone for marrying Tasha. Boomer wants to destroy Lady along with Diesel 10, so they can take over the whole Thomas & Friends universe. ** Scott McCord as Young Boomer * Nick Palatas as Patch ** Crispin Glover as Adult Patch * Jennifer Lawrence as Stacy Jones * John Leguizamo as Billy Twofeathers * Drew Barrymore as Mrs. Bethany Stone * George Clooney as Sir Topham Hatt * Hayden Rolence as Burnett Stone, Jr. * The Umbilical Brothers as Thomas's Driver and Fireman * Matthew Lillard as Duck's Driver There are some cameo appearances in the film like: * Alexander Gould as Newspaper Delivery Boy * John Bellis as Shining Time Firefighter * Robert Zemeckis as Himself (He appears in a mid-credits scene along with Britt Allcroft to tell the audience that he and Britt hoped the audience enjoyed the movie) * Britt Allcroft as Herself (She appears in a mid-credits scene along with Robert Zemeckis to tell the audience that she and Zemeckis hoped the audience enjoyed the movie) * Ringo Starr as Storyteller (He appears in a scene where he tell stories about Thomas and his friends in the Island of Sodor to the children) * Keith Scott as Australian Passenger * Doug Walker as Himself (He makes a cameo appearance when he was late for his train) Voice Actors of animated characters Steam Engines * Michael J. Fox as Thomas * Elizabeth Daily as Percy * Britt Allcroft as Lady * Peter Capaldi as Toby * Brad Garrett as Gordon * Christopher Lloyd as Henry * Susan Roman as James * Matthew Broderick as Edward * Kath Soucie as Emily * Nika Futterman as Rosie * Yvonne Grundy as Nia * Rachel Miller as Rebecca * Keith Wickham as Skarloey and Sir Handel * John Hasler as Rheneas * Steven Kynman as Duck and Peter Sam * Tom Stourton as Duncan Diesels * Clancy Brown as Diesel 10 * Neil Crone as Splatter * Kevin Frank as Dodge * Steven Kynman as Paxton and Dart * Keith Wickham as Norman, Den and Salty * Tessa Thompson as Mavis * Kerry Shale as Diesel and 'Arry * William Hope as Bert * Bob Golding as Sidney * Matt Wilkinson as Rusty * Tracy-Ann Oberman as Daisy * Michael Angelis as BoCo Others * Teresa Gallagher and Nika Futterman as Annie and Clarabel * Kevin Frank as Bertie and Harold * Miriam Margolyes as Henrietta * Jennifer Saunders as Elizabeth * John DiMaggio as George and Cranky * Tom Kenny and Dee Bradley Baker as Troublesome Trucks Production Development In 2003, 3 years after the original film became a box-office failure, Britt Allcroft, creator of Thomas & Friends, has been resigned from her original company which was now known as "Gullane Entertainment". After HiT Entertainment took control on Thomas & Friends, HiT revealed that its theatrical division would be piloted by a "Thomas" film. Originally targeted for late-2010 release, in September 2009 this was revised to "Spring 2011". As of January 2011, the release date had been pushed back further to 2012 and the name of the production had still not been announced. The initial draft of the script was written by Josh Klausner who has also said that the film will be set around the times of World War II, Will McRobb and Chris Viscardi also helped write the script. On 8 June 2011, Deadline announced that 9 director Shane Acker will direct the live-action adaptation of Thomas the Tank Engine, with Weta Digital designing the film's visual effects. Since then, no actual production has been announced, until Robert Zemeckis came in and remake the original "Thomas and the Magic Railroad" film, along with Britt Allcroft, to bring in new actors to play the characters from the original "Thomas and the Magic Railroad" film (except Alec Baldwin, in which he will reprise his role as Mr. Conductor), new voice actors to play the animated Thomas & Friends characters, video editing and restoration, audio mastering, mixing, recording, and editing, CGI animation for the "Island of Sodor" segments, blue-screen and green-screen effects for the "Island of Sodor" segments, new visual effects, and some brand new music, along with the original music from the original "Thomas and the Magic Railroad" film. Casting While the film is on development, Robert Zemeckis hired Alec Baldwin who previously played as Mr. Conductor in the original 2000 film, so Baldwin agreed to reprise his role. coming soon! Filming the film is done development Animation the film is done development Visual Effects the film is done development Post Production the film is done development Music the film is done development Release Thomas and the Magic Railroad is set to release into theaters on TBA in America. Thomas and the Magic Railroad will also be releasing on DVD, Blu-ray, and Blu-ray 3D on the late TBA with a new DVD and Blu-ray release for the director's cut version of the original 2000 film. Along with the TBA film and the 2000 film's director's cut version is the Shining Time Station Volumes 1, 2, and 3 on DVD and Blu-ray. 2099 Animated shorts The TBA remake of "Thomas and the Magic Railroad" has four computer-animated shorts which was the recreation of well-known episodes from the original television series like Thomas and Bertie, Thomas Goes Fishing, Thomas and Gordon and Down the Mine by HiT Entertainment in theatrical releases and on DVD and Blu-ray. Marketing About a few weeks later after the film's release, Bachmann Industries released a model of Shining Time Station and even the Island of Sodor along with train models of Thomas, Lady, and Diesel 10 and some human models of Burnett Stone, Lily, Mr. Conductor, and P.T. Boomer. Home media the film is done development Soundtrack : Main article: Thomas and the Magic Railroad (2019 film)/Soundtrack Broadway musical One year after the movie's release, the film will be adapted into a Broadway musical based on the movie titled Thomas and the Magic Railroad: The Musical. : Main article: Thomas and the Magic Railroad: The Musical : DVD or Blu-Ray Main Menu Here's is the sections from the DVD and Blu-Ray main menus. * Play Movie * Scene Selection *# Opening Titles/Meet Thomas *# Lily in the Big City *# Boomer's Return *# Diesel 10 Bothers the Steam Engines *# Splatter & Dodge *# Mr. Conductor *# Lily *# The Legend *# Sir Topham Hatt's Orders *# Sugar in a Diesel Tank *# Burnett meets Boomer *# "I Know How the Moon Must Feel" *# "Where is the windmill?" *# George the Steamroller *# Calling Junior *# Lily Arrives at Shining Time *# Mr. Conductor Has Another Bad Dream *# Boomer and Burnett at the Crossroads *# Sounds of Lady's Magic *# Mavis Betrays the Mean Diesels/Delayed *# Set Friendship in Motion *# "Really Useful Engine" *# Mr. Conductor in Diesel's Clutches *# The Clue *# Traveling to the Island of Sodor *# Lily Meets Thomas *# Family Reunion *# Landing into Trouble *# Mr. Conductor and Lily *# The Truth About Lady *# Solving Some Mysteries *# Looking for Lily's Grandfather *# "It's Now or Never!" *# George Quits the Evil Diesel Team *# Green for Glory *# The Train Chase to the Viaduct *# "Gold Dust!!!" *# 20 Years into the Future *# Curtain Call *# Closing Credits ** Set Up *** Language **** English **** French (Thomas et le Magie Ferroviaire) **** Spanish (Thomas y el Ferrocarril Mágico) **** Portuguese (Thomas e a Ferrovia Mágica) **** German (Thomas die kleine Lokomotive: Die Magische Eisenbahn; title translated in English as Thomas the Tank Engine: The Magic Railroad) **** Hungarian (Thomas és a Mágikus Vasút) **** Danish (Thomas og det Magic Railroad) **** Norwegian (Thomas og den Magiske Jernbanen) **** Swedish (Thomas och den Magiska Järnvägen) **** Italian (Thomas e Magica Ferrovia) **** Polish (Thomas i Magiczna Kolejowy) **** Japanese (きかんしゃトーマス魔法の線路) **** Korean (토마스와 마법의 철도) **** Greek (Θωμάς και το Μαγεία Σιδηροδρομικές) **** Thai (โทมัสและเวทมนตร์ของทางรถไฟ) *** Subtitles **** English **** French **** Spanish **** Portuguese **** German **** Hungarian **** Danish **** Norwegian **** Swedish **** Italian **** Polish **** Japanese **** Korean **** Greek **** Thai *** Commentaries with Britt Allcroft and Robert Zemeckis (with or without subtitles) ** Special Features *** The History of Thomas the Tank Engine *** History of Thomas & Friends *** Making of Thomas and the Magic Railroad (2000) **** Casting **** Development **** Setting **** The P.T. Boomer scenes, featuring Lennox family and Nicolas Cage. **** Release *** Deleted scenes *** Outtakes *** Artwork design *** Thomas and Bertie, Thomas Goes Fishing, Thomas and Gordon and Down the Mine computer-animated remake short films *** Trailers **** Teaser trailer **** 1 **** 2 **** 3 **** Sneak Previews **** Back to the Future: 35th anniversary Trilogy on Blu-Ray & DVD trailer **** The Secret Life of Pets 2 on Blu-Ray & DVD trailer Reception Box office the film is done development Critical response The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 94% approval rating with an average rating of 8.7/10 based on 260 reviews. The website's consensus reads, "An old timer film that it was very bad on 2000 so now it was back on the rail to make it better." On Metacritic, the film achieved an average score of 88 out of 100 based on 39 reviews, signifying "universal acclaim". CinemaScore reported that audiences gave the film a rare "A-" grade. Some of the critics and moviegoers had praised Nicolas Cage's performance of the character Boomer, The New York Times reviewed his performance "When the infamous actor used to make an appearance in any movie like The Wicker Man until it has been flopped, but his performance that he did was the main ''antagonist P.T. Boomer in the remake from the original 2000 film ''Thomas and the Magic Railroad where Boomer is very envious that he has nothing to get on his way, which is the most great performance I have ever seen". IGN game the film a grade of 9.1/10 (Amazing), coming soon! Accolades Sequels : Main article: Thomas & Friends Cinematic Universe : Since the 2019 Thomas and the Magic Railroad reboot released into theaters, and had received universal acclaim, won a truckload of awards, and was a huge box-office success, Robert Zemeckis & Britt Allcroft are thinking about turning the whole film into an all-new theatrical Thomas & Friends movie franchise that was also related to the original Thomas & Friends franchise. This franchise was known as Thomas & Friends Cinematic Universe. Since the franchise was born, Britt Allcroft was developing a sequel to the new TATMR reboot, which was based on "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens and the Veggietales video "An Easter Carol" from Big Idea Entertainment. Although the sequel doesn't have the official title yet, Allcroft named the Thomas & Friends sequel "A Sodor Easter Carol". The film was set to be released on Easter 2022, with the script being written by Keith Lango, Tim Hodge, and Britt Allcroft, who will also return as director and producer. Robert Zemeckis, who might have been interested in holidays since he previously worked on The Polar Express in 2004, will return as director of the sequel. Transcripts Main Transcript Main article: Thomas and the Magic Railroad (Upcoming film)/Transcript Trailer Transcripts Main article: Thomas and the Magic Railroad (Upcoming film)/Trailer transcripts Opening and Closing Credits Main article: Thomas and the Magic Railroad (Upcoming film)/Credits Outtakes Main article: Thomas and the Magic Railroad (Upcoming film)/Outtakes Rating Thomas and the Magic Railroad is rated PG for some sequences that are too scary for children. Trivia * This film has been used on the 2000 film that it was edited because this film was too scary for young audiences which the true main villain P.T. Boomer was cut, so in the new film it still has P.T. Boomer. This is likely of the film is rated PG instead of the G rating the original 2000 version had. ** It also has George in the film which in the 2000 film he's omitted. ** Plus the other engines from the television series in the story. * Special thanks to Britt Allcroft for the four parts of the script from the 2000 film with all the characters and even too Eddie Kennedy in fan-fiction of the plot. * Edward Glen originally voiced Thomas the Tank Engine in the 2000 film, In this film Michael J. Fox will voice Thomas. * * Doug Walker (who play as the Nostalgia Critic) was his second appearance in the film, his first role is the Angry Video Game Nerd: The Movie, which Britt Allcroft find it really great of his performance from the Nostalgia Critic's review of her first film, even though it wasn't as successful as the other Thomas & Friends films which are now currently direct-to-video films and/or TV specials at the time being. * Some of the soundtrack used the music in the first and third season of the series. Category:Mattel Creations Category:Movies Category:Universal Pictures Category:ImageMovers Category:Legendary Pictures Category:Upcoming films Category:Films about trains Category:Films directed by Robert Zemeckis Category:Michael J. Fox Category:E. G. Daily Category:Kath Soucie Category:Clancy Brown Category:Alec Baldwin Category:Owen Wilson Category:Brad Garrett Category:Christopher Lloyd Category:Universal Studios